Markings
by Ille Somnia
Summary: When Natsu goes missing after a mission with his teammates, mostly everyone is relatively calm... that is, until they find him. Barely able to take a breath, Natsu tells the guild one of the most bone-chilling things that could be said; something no sane person would ever want to take on. All YOU need to do is sit back and watch as all of hell breaks loose in this awesome tale.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone! This is Ille Somnia, and I'm bringing you a new story called_ Markings_. For those of you that read on Wattpad as well might know of this fanfiction- may have even read it in fact- but I can assure you that this is a completely edited and re-written version. I can't believe how I wrote just a year ago. *shudders* (Well, it wasn't all _that _bad, but still). **

** Anyways, here we go, to all of those who haven't read the story before. It may seem a bit of a boring beginning, but I can assure you things will heat up soon. (Lol, heat up. You know, 'cause Natsu's a fire mage? Anyone? No? Well, I tried). **

** *Ahem* LET THE STORY BEGIN!**

* * *

Natsu Dragneel, the fire dragonslayer, stared up into the darkening sky as he breathed a contented sigh. His teams' most recent mission had gone quite well; they had completed it in almost no time at all, and they had little trouble—a giant leap from what usually happened on most missions. The dragonslayer suppressed a snort, remembering just how many of them had gone haywire. Pretty much all of them.

Currently, he Lucy, Gray, Happy, and Erza were making their way back to the guild, and Lucy had already retreated into Horologium, the grandfather clock spirit of hers, claiming that it was freezing out. He huffed a breath into the air, watching as a cloud of steam formed and dissipated within moments. Well, it wasn't as if he could feel it too much (being a fire mage and all), but he supposed that if he could see his breath, it must have been cold to some degree.

Heh, degree.

Happy shifted from his place atop Natsu's head. "Aye, Natsu," he squeaked sleepily, "Are we there yet?"

Natsu pouted. "Were you napping and letting me do all the walking for you, again?" He glared half-heartedly at the cat face peeking over his forehead.

"Aye, sir!" The blue cat grinned.

Natsu rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Yeah, we're nearly at the guild, you can get your fish there. Go back to sleep, Happy."

"Fish!" exclaimed Happy, who then promptly fell back into dreamland.

Smiling slightly at the cat's cheerfulness, Natsu continued forward. It was natural that they should feel at ease after completing a mission… The smile turned downwards. But he couldn't help but feel that something… something was about to go terribly wrong.

Natsu wasn't one to ignore his instincts. He kept his guard. After all, if something did happen, he would protect his nakama, no matter what the cost.

Unseen by the Fairy Tail mages, an individual, or rather, _individuals, _were tailing them.

The team was nearly at the guild when Natsu took notice that Lucy had fallen asleep, her head leaning forward so much that it pressed into the glass door on Horologium.

"Oi," Natsu grinned, "Happy, it looks like you aren't the only one who was tired!"

"Huh?" Happy was confused for a moment until he caught sight of Lucy. "Ohhh, Lushy's napping too!" he giggled.

Erza smiled. "Well, I suppose that we're all weary after walking all that way."

Gray put up a hand. "But she didn't even wal-"

Erza hummed in affirmative, interrupting the ice mage. "Yes, we are all weary from walking such a long way."

Gray muttered something incoherent.

"Well, then, I could take her down to her apartment…" She trailed off, looking hungrily at the guild. "But the strawberry cake is in there…"

Natsu laughed. "Ah, Erza, it's okay, I'll take her!"

"Natsu, can I stay here for my fish?" Happy asked, twirling up in the air around Natsu's head.

"What, there's none at Lucy's house?"

The blue cat giggled. "Nope, I ate it all last time we visited."

"Oh, yeah…" Natsu rubbed the back of his head as he remembered their last trip to Lucy's house—the same spot that Lucy had punched after they walked in on her coming out of the shower. Again. "Well, that's okay, but you shouldn't leave until I come back. Or ask Mira or Lisanna to walk you home if you wanna return before I do, okay?"

Happy gave a little exclamation of joy. "Aye, sir!" He happened to glance at Gray. "Graaaay~" Sang the small cat.

"What?"

"Your clooooothes~"

"Huh-?" Gray's eyes shot down towards his body, which was now missing one coat, shirt, and pair of pants. "What the-! Shit!" He ran off. "I'll see you guys tomorrow!" he called over his shoulder.

Good old Gray and his quirks. Natsu couldn't help but smirk. _He _didn't have any weird habits.

"Yes, you do." Happy stared at him seriously. "Many, many."

"What?"

"Nothing!"

Erza huffed a smile and grabbed Happy by the tail. "Let's go, Happy." She pushed her way into the guild.

"Charle~!" The dragonslayer heard Happy call for the female before the doors swung shut, effectively blocking the jabber and ruckus from the outside world.

Natsu beamed. That was Fairy Tail, alright.

Still smiling widely he crouched down next to Horologium. "Open up," he commanded.

The clock complied. "My time was just used up. I won't have the need to drop her, now." He said, before giving the pink, er, _salmon_ haired teen a wink and disappearing back to the Celestial World, allowing Lucy to fall neatly into his arms.

Natsu nearly dropped her in shock. Geez, she was _freezing_.

The blonde smiled in her sleep, snuggling closer to Natsu. "My personal heater…" She mumbled, causing Natsu to burst out in a violent flush, easily out-pinking his hair.

"D-don't say stuff like that!" he stammered. It wasn't as if she could hear him, anyways; she was deep in the grasp of sleep.

Cheeks still colored, Natsu walked the several blocks back to Lucy's apartment, and by the time he had arrived, the sun was just brushing the horizon. Natsu stared at it for a moment. It was so _pretty_. Hey, just because he was a guy didn't mean he couldn't appreciate beauty. He glanced down at Lucy, then strode up the steps leading into her apartment.

"Where did she leave the key…?" He wondered. Then he shrugged. Well, it wasn't as if he hadn't kicked in the door before. He lifted a leg, making sure not to jostle Lucy. There would be no regrets when Lucy punched his face in tomorrow; he recovered every time. For the most part. He was sure there were some brain cells that he would not recover.

Oh, well. Natsu kicked, but stumbled slightly when his foot met no resistance, the door having swung open at the barest touch.  
"What...?"

It should not have been like that, unless Lucy had forgotten to close the door when she left her apartment, to which Natsu was pretty much one hundred percent certain she would never do. This was _Lucy_ he was talking about, the perfectionist.

No, she wouldn't have left the door unlocked, much less open.  
Very concerned now, the teen glared into the unlit entryway of the home. Whoever had broken in... They could still be in there. As he took a deep breath and caught no unfamiliar scents, though, he began to doubt that it was true. He was a dragonslayer; he had stronger senses than any normal mage or human. So, he should have been able to catch a whiff of whoever had been -or was- in the house, even if it had been a few days old. No one that he knew of could hide their scent _that_ thoroughly.

Still tense, Natsu crept into the apartment, Lucy in his arms. When he reached the light switch, he flicked it on, only relaxing after he had done a thorough sweep throughout the rooms, (making sure not to cause a mess, because last time he had done that... He shivered. Lucy could be even scarier than _Erza_ sometimes). Letting out a huff of air, Natsu finally placed Lucy into her bed, tucking her in as gently as he could so he wouldn't wake her.

He was turning to leave when a hand caught him by the wrist. Surprised, he turned to Lucy to find her staring at him with sleepy eyes. "Don' leave yet..." Her voice was slurred drowsily.

Natsu looked at the sun outside the window, which was now nearly engulfed by the distant horizon. His plan had been to go back to the guild to tell Gramps about his discovery, but now, looking at this sleepy Lucy... The teen felt something inside of him give.

Whoever it had been could come back, and it wouldn't be smart to leave Lucy alone. He could just stay a bit, just to make sure everything was A-Okay, and then run down to the guild to inform the elderly man.

He gave Lucy a small smile and nodded, seating himself on the floor next to the bed. Lucy grinned tiredly at him and held his hand tighter.

* * *

He must have dozed off at some point, because when he woke up it was _definitely _well past midnight. Natsu rolled his eyes at his own carelessness. Seriously, he could be such a dope sometimes, and he himself admitted it. Well, not to anyone else.

As he lightly placed Lucy's hand under the covers and pulled them up higher over her, he remembered about Happy.

Damn it.

He could _absolutely _be a dope sometimes. The little guy was probably worried about him. Natsu could only hope that Happy had done as he asked and had Lisanna or Mira to walk him home.

Well, what was done was done. He would just get home quickly and apologize to him by catching him the biggest fish ever later. Natsu gave Lucy one last, warm look. "Bye, Luce," he whispered, giving her a smile.

Without further ado, Natsu exited the apartment, double checking that he had securely locked the door behind him. The dragonslayer sighed and glanced up at the moon, frowning slightly when a looming cloud passed over it, blocking the already dim glow.

A shiver crept down Natsu's spine, raising his hair on end. Natsu was never one to ignore his instincts, and right then they were screaming bloody murder.

With a glare at the surrounding darkness, Natsu stepped away from the home, challenging whatever was hiding to come out. "Oi, bastard, you've been following us, haven't you?" he growled.

Nothing but the whispers of the chilling breeze answered him.

"Are you gonna come out yourself, or am I gonna have to force you?" he asked, cracking his knuckles.

Natsu's eyes snapped to the nearest lacrima post* as a small _ping_ emanated from its direction.

'_So he's over there, huh?'_

Natsu sprinted to the structure, flames licking up to his elbow as he prepared his attack. **"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"**His eyes widened when his fist met nothing but solid pavement, cracking it upon impact.

There was a sudden cracking sound and a flash of blinding pain.

Cool breath tickled the back of his neck. "You missed, Dragneel," A voice told him mockingly.

That was the last Natsu heard before he fell to darkness.

* * *

Lucy swore she was going to throttle the cat someday. She had been jerked awake by the sound of shattering glass, only to open her eyes and find one broken window and one sheepish looking Happy. Yes, one day she would definitely get her revenge.

"Did you really need to break in through my window?" she asked, annoyed. Well, it wasn't like it hadn't happened before.

The blue cat gave her an innocent look. "Well, I was knocking on the door a lot and you never came! So I decided to take the emergency route."

The blonde's eye twitched and she raised her fist to pound him over the head when she stopped. Something… something was off. Where was the other obnoxious one? "Hey, Happy, where's Natsu?"

Happy's expression changed immediately; now he looked perturbed. He fiddled with his tail. "Well, that's exactly what I came here about! But Natsu's not here, is he?!" he cried.

Lucy's brow creased. Natsu was missing? "No…" she said.

Happy threw his paws into the air. "I don't know where he is, then! I've looked everywhere! He said he would come back yesterday, but he didn't! And Natsu _never_ goes back on his word unless something really bad happens!"

Lucy could feel her stomach tighten with worry. That was true; Natsu never went back on his promises. She gnawed on her lip. "Well, are you sure you've checked everywhere?"

"Aye!"

"So you've checked the guild?"

Happy colored.

Lucy sighed, then gave the cat a smile and a pat on the head. "See? He's probably there." She got up, stretching her arms over her head. "Why don't we go check now?" The mage gave the cat a look. "You're paying for my window, though."

"It's not my fault you didn't answer the door."

"Cat!"

"O-okay!"

Lucy grinned, but as she prepared for the day, she couldn't let go of the biting feeling that everything was going to terribly wrong. She rolled her eyes. Just like most of their missions…

* * *

"W-what?! He's not here?!"

Makarov shook his head, now looking rather serious. "No, he isn't."

"He hasn't taken any jobs, either, so he's not out of Magnolia as far as I know." Mira added in.

Happy looked on the verge of tears. "B-but I've looked everywhere! He wasn't at home, in the restaurants, in the shops, at the park, the training fields," he rambled on for nearly a minute. "Or even at Lucy's! And now I know he hasn't been here!"

Makarov crossed his arms, and let out a frustrated sigh. "It seems you have looked in many places..."

"Could we perhaps hold an organized search for Natsu, Master?" Erza offered. "One person can only do so much searching on their own."

"What, for that flame-brain? He always gets into trouble, doesn't he?" Gray whined. "I should have figured he would do something like this."

"You get into as much trouble as he does, Gray." Lucy pointed out.

Gray blushed, embarrassed at being caught. "Oh, and Gray, you might want to find your jacket before anything else goes missing." Lucy added.

The ice mage slouched and shuffled away, face burning in shame, with a barely audible "Not again…"

Mira blinked. "But anyways, I think it would make all of us feel better if we found Natsu. I'm all for a search."

There was a chorus of approval throughout the guild, and Makarov nodded in approval. "Alright, it's settled then. Everyone, get into teams of two; we're going to go and find a certain troublesome brat!"

Lucy grinned. "Happy, let's go find Natsu!"

Happy twirled in the air, brought out of his state of depression by his friends. "Aye, sir!" he saluted.

Hope raged in Lucy's chest, and for the first time that morning she felt the worry wash away. They would definitely find Natsu… because, well, Natsu was Natsu and Fairy Tail would not be the same without him. And if Natsu wasn't okay…she felt a sharp tug at her heart, and firmly put the thought away. She would not be allowed to think that way. Her and her friends would find Natsu, no matter how long it took.

* * *

Lucy was getting desperate. She glanced at the sun, which was now just disappearing behind the horizon, and the lone star that had just peeked through the cloak of new darkness. Everyone had been searching all day to no avail; Natsu remained unfound and there was no information on his well-being. It had gotten to the point where the groups had split up only to try and improve the chances of the dragonslayer being located. Magnolia was a large city, but not _that_ large. They should have found him already—that was, unless he had been hiding or had _been_ hidden. Lucy shivered, and repressed the thought. When the time came to bring that forth, she would, but not until then. It was better to focus on the task at hand.

Perhaps the others had found something. She could ask—everyone in the guild had been linked telepathically by Warren—but they would said something. The celestial mage opened her mouth to ask anyways, when Happy interrupted her.

"WENDY!" the shriek the cat omitted was horrible. "WENDY! GET OVER HERE, NOW!"

Lucy felt a wave of fear hit her like a train.

"Happy, what happened?!" Gray's voice sounded in her head.

Those next words, the ones she now dreaded—because there was no _way _Happy would have screamed like that if there hadn't been anything wrong—Happy almost couldn't answer through his sobs.

"Natsu. I found Natsu."

* * *

_No. _The last she had heard before the communication gave out were Happy's desperate sobs. Dang it… Warren must have panicked and let his magic go out of whack. Lucy bit her lip. Whatever state Happy had found Natsu in… it wasn't good.

She took off as fast as she could; she _had _to find them and help.

As Lucy rounded the alleyway where Happy had said he was, her heart leapt to her throat, and she brought a hand to her mouth as she fell to her knees in shock.

Natsu.

He was sprawled on the ground, crimson staining his clothing and dying his already pink hair a deeper hue, the red liquid even going as far as to pool in a large puddle around him. His normally tan skin was now such a deathly pale, he already seemed… No.

Lucy crawled towards his immobile body, barely noticing the sobbing Happy who clutched at Natsu's hand. Her hands fumbled over his neck as she searched for his pulse, something, _anything _to ensure that he was still alive, and not… not _gone. _Gone like her mother. Gone like her father. She _couldn't _lose someone else. Especially not him. Natsu… he was _special. _

She didn't even register until then that his skin was icy cold—no, _Gray_ was cold, not Natsu! He was supposed to _warm! _He was a _fire _mage, for crying out loud!

Lucy sighed in relief when she felt the weak flutter of Natsu's heart. Gently, she raised his head and hugged him, trying to share some of her warmth. She didn't even mind that she was getting blood all over herself, too; it wasn't the time to be picky about stuff like that.

Natsu's eyelids flitted, and opened halfway, showing emerald eyes dulled over with pain. "Lucy…" his eyes focused on her for the briefest of moments, but then screwed shut again as he drew in a sharp gasp and faded back into unconsciousness.

Tears slid down Lucy's cheeks as she choked back a sob. Who… who could have done this? Natsu couldn't have been beaten like this; he was easily one of the strongest mages in the guild. Looking at him now though, he just seemed so fragile…

She looked up sharply as footsteps echoed, drawing closer, revealing the owners when the bulk of the guild skidded to a stop before the alleyway. Some gaped in shock at seeing Natsu, others began crying, some screaming, others vowing revenge on the assailant.

Erza and Gray shoved their way through their guild mates, not having seen how Natsu was yet. Lucy looked helplessly at them when they stooped in their tracks as they caught sight of their teammate.

Gray punched the wall in rage, cracking the brick. "Who… who did this?!" he growled. He shouted in frustration. "Damn it!"

Next Wendy rushed into the scene, immediately making her way towards her friend after the initial shock. She began working her healing magic on him as soon as she got to him. After a few minutes of the nonstop healing, his eyes flickered open for the second time.

The crowd hushed at the sight.

"Lucy…" he breathed. The blonde could tell he was trying to say something, but the dragonslayer couldn't seem to be able to muster the energy to speak louder. She leaned in, growing more saddened by the moment as she saw the pain in her friend's eyes.

The next thing he said made her pale, and her blood run cold.

"What did he say?" Erza demanded. "Lucy!"

The one person that we, the whole of Fairy Tail probably had no chance against. The one name that brought chills to the air. The one who had killed millions in the past, for the mere joy of it. The one who had hurt Natsu.

"Zeref…" she whispered.


	2. Chapter 2

**~~~~ Chapter 2 : Alive ~~~~~**

P.O.V. Natsu Dragneel

Natsu couldn't remember much after being knocked out. He knew time had passed, but exactly how much he wasn't sure. The first time he had come to, though, _that_he remembered clear enough.

When he opened his eyes, he had found that he couldn't move. His best guess was that it was some type of paralyzing magic; there wasn't anything keeping him down, otherwise.

Next, he noticed where he was. Well, he didn't know _where_, because frankly, he didn't have the slightest clue to his location. No familiar scents, sounds, sights, nothing. He sighed mentally. Why did this stuff always happen to him? Not that it wasn't entertaining; he just preferred more of a warning, something more direct.

Natsu tensed as he heard footsteps approaching. He quickly counted them; there seemed to be five, at least.

"Oh, Dragneel's awake already?" said a nasally voice. "I'm surprised, even if it is _him._ Most people would stay unconcious for at least another twenty-four hours or so."

Another scoffed. "Well you shouldn't be, you heard what Lord Zeref said. We shouldn't underestimate him under any circumstances." he continued. "And that's exactly what it seems like you're doing."

Natsu's eyes widened. Had he heard right?! Zeref was behind this?!

The first voice returned. He let out a snort. "Yeah, whatever. Not everything he says could be correct, you know."

A more feminine voice hissed. "Do you know what he would do if he heard you say that?"

"Sure, he would find it more amusing than anything."

"Man, he has _no_sense of humor whatsoever. What the hell makes you think that?"

"Whenever my usual group's around him, he acts like he finds everything...amusing."

The woman seemed confused. "When my normal group is around him, he's all... cold and stuff."

A fourth, insanely low voice intervened. "None of that matters now. Are you all forgetting why we're here in the first place?"

The woman sighed. "Yeah, I just wanna go home. Let's get this over with already."

Someone leaned over Natsu, and he was finally able to see one of their faces. The woman had high cheekbones and what seemed to be a permanent frown stuck on her face. She held some sort of bowl in her arms, and as he caught a whiff of it his nose crinkled in disgust. Aw, geez, what was that?

"You might want to shut your eyes if you would prefer to keep your vision." she said, right before tilting the bowl and letting a sort of pitch black liquid pour all over him.

Natsu's eyes widened a fraction before screwing his eyes shut, and he held his breath as the stuff coated him from head-to-toe. He spluttered as the stuff settled on him, soaking into his clothes and hair, and completely overpowering his sensitive nose. The stench this close nearly made him throw up as if he were in a moving vehicle. He decided it was probably not the best time to spew out his innards though, and he just barely managed to suppress it.

The woman drew back into the corners of Natsu's eyes where the others were, which was seriously beginning to annoy him. He couldn't even move his head to see the people!

The five of them shuffled to different spots surrounding Natsu, and raised their arms to the sky (_now_he could see some part of them) as they began whispering something. It wasn't as if he couldn't hear them; he could hear them clearly enough, it was more of not understanding. What they were saying was certainly not in his language.

"Oi!" he shouted over them. "What the hell do you people think you're doing?"

The man with the nasaly voice snapped at him. "Bite your tounge, Dragneel!" he snapped his fingers, and Natsu's mouth clamped shut, nearly taking off Natsu's tounge with it.

The woman turned on the man. "I hope you didn't mean it literally, did you?"

"No, that was an accident."

Internally, Natsu was having a rage. _What_did they think they were doing? What did _Zeref_of all people have to do with this, and why were they targeting him? Natsu tried to summon some of his magic, berating himself for not thinking of it earlier, but found that he couldn't even summon a spark. He clenched his teeth.

Moments passed, and Natsu took notice of a violent purple magic circle taking form about an inch or two above him. Crap. This wasn't good. He had to do something, anything, but he _couldn't._

He felt his skin begin to tingle, and for some reason the putrid smell of the liquid began to fade. Natsu wondered why until he crossed his eyes to look at his nose, only to find that the stuff was being absorbed into his skin.

Without warning, a flash of lightning stuck down out of nowhere and struck him, overriding all his senses and sending him into a searing agony. Not even Laxus's lightning hurt like that. It was if the electricity was targeting every individual cell, jabbing it with a spear, and burning it after it had bled to death.

"AHHHHH!" Natsu screamed, finally able to move. It seemed that to preform whatever it was they were doing, they had to release the binding spell. Even with the pain nearly blinding him, Natsu stood up on shaky legs, feeling somewhat re-energized as he found he was able to summon his magic.

Flames collected collected in his mouth, and Natsu turned to one of the men, who looked at him in disgust. The dragonslayer aimed at him. **"Fire Dragon's,"**he raised his hands to his mouth, **"ROAR!"**The concentrated stream of fire shot out of his mouth straight at the man, who now stared at him in shock, not even moving. It hit him like a boulder, knocking him back directly into the wall of the alleyway, where he slumped to the ground and lay, out cold.

Due to Natsu concentrating on that one for even the briefest of moments, though, the rest caught him off-guard. He wasn't even able to say anything as four knives dug into him, and one pounded him on the back of the neck again, returning him to unconciousness.

* * *

The next time he woke, Natsu found himself in Lucy's arms, the blonde sobbing her eyes out. Natsu struggled to move, brush away the tears, do _something; _he hated seeing her sad more than anything else. In the end, though, the most he managed was to whisper her name, lips barely moving. Lucy noticed him, and she gave another cry as his eyes slid closed and he once again visited dreamland.

* * *

Later, he felt some strength return to him, and his eyes cracked open to see Wendy working hard, using her magic to heal him. He clenched his teeth slightly. _They needed to know... _Those people that attacked him, they did something to him, and they had something to do with _him. _Zeref.

He shuddered, and he felt a searing pain begin in his chest, spreading like fire throughout his body. Natsu bit down on his cheek, _hard_, to keep from crying out; it would do nothing but alarm his friends more, and he was in no state to actually explain things. It seemed as if an eternity had gone by before the pain ceased, and rather abruptly. His vision blackened for a moment, and Natsu realized that he was going to go out again. _He had to tell them!_

"Lucy..." he gasped, fighing to keep his breathing under control. Lucy's eyes widened, and she leaned down a bit to hear him better.

"Natsu!" she breathed. "Natsu, I'm so glad you're okay!" tears began to form in her eyes again. "W-when I found you, I-I..." she trailed off, biting her lip.

"Lucy..." he stared at her for a moment, then panicked for a second when he realized he was getting off track. "Lucy, you've got to tell the others..." he inhaled another large breath. "I can't speak any louder than this...!"

Lucy looked at him with worry, nodding quickly.

"Listen..."

* * *

Natsu's dreams felt strangely real as he slept- most were so vivid, he could have sworn that they were memories and not his imagination acting up on him again. He hoped to the death that they were nothing but that though; his imagination. Nothing more. If they were... everyone was in trouble.

The first thing Natsu noticed when he woke was the familiar smell; he was safe, where he belonged, and he relaxed before even listening or seeing. He smiled slightly as he took in the sight of Fairy Tail's infirmary when he opened his eyes; he was home, and that was more relieving than his pride would let him admit. It took quite the effort to sit up and get out of bed; Natsu nearly passed out when he stood up too quickly. He wanted to see if everyone was alright though; they all seemed quite pale when he had seen them earlier. In the alleyway. Though he supposed he would have been a bit too if he had found one of his friends in his position.

Natsu shook his head and shuffled to the door in a painfully slow manner, pausing when he got to the mirror and caught a glimpse of himself. He grinned slightly; he could probably pass for best mummy costume!

"Oh, but it's not Halloween..." he slouched a bit when he remembered that it had passed three months prior.

Still grumbling a bit, he continued his way to the main room of the guild, deciding that he could do a damage checkup once he had seen everyone. Particularly Lucy; she had seemed the most shaken up.

The dragonslayer frowned when he reached the door seperating the two rooms, though. Something... was different. Missing.

He narrowed his eyes and listened hard, realizing it was exactly that; Fairy Tail was _never _quiet. Pushing open the door, the creak it made sounded a million times louder than it should have. Frowning as he caught the scents of all his guildmates, he wondered what the heck was going on to throw everyone into absolute silence.

As he reached the end of the hallway, he had to pinch himself (further increasing his intake of pain) to make sure what he was seeing was actually happening, because, you know, he had previously been dreaming things that seemed real and all. His mouth agape as he stared at them, he pointed a finger at them accusingly.

"W-who the hell are you people?!" he studdered out. Who knew? There could have been body taking over aliens around.

One by one, they all turned and blinked at him.

Erza, eating her _fruitcake_, Gray, _fully_ clothed and pacing back and forth, Wendy, nibbling on _pickled _plums, Gajeel _sipping _a cup of _tea_, and Lucy hugging _Happy. _

Natsu looked as everyone immediately relaxed, but he wondered why. Gray's eyebrow twitched. "Did you hit your head, or something, flame-brain? It's us, obviously."

Happy sprang up, eyes wide. "Oh no! Did Natsu forget about us?!" He flew over to Natsu and began tugging at the tufts his of pink hair sticking out from in between the bandages. "Nooooo~! Natsu! Remember uuus~!" he cried.

Natsu let out a huff of air. "Oh, so it is you guys."

"NATSU!" everyone in the guild cheered, and began gathering around him.

"O-oi! That's too close!" He panicked at the sudden attention. The dragonslayer pouted a bit when he saw Lucy make her way through the crowd. Aw, she was still crying! Had he really looked that bad...? "Luce, see?" he grinned, puffing out his chest. "I'm oka- ACK!" Luffy slammed into him, wrapping her arms around his middle fiercely. Heat rose to his cheeks at the contact. "Er, Lucy, are you okay?" he asked anxiously.

She tightened her grip on him. "I am now,"

Natsu grinned and held her back, blushing more deeply. "I'm glad!" he chirped.

Happy gained a mischievous look on his face. "They liiiiiike each other~!"

Lucy somehow conjured up a pillow which she threw at the flying cat. "You wish!"

Everyone laughed.

* * *

Gray watched everything from a bit away, eyes distant. He sighed, brow furrowing in a confused manner. There was a burning feeling in his heart... Sure, he was more than relieved that Natsu was alright; he had been out for nearly three days, after all. But the sight of him hugging Lucy like that...

He stared down at his palms and frowned. It was all so weird...


	3. Chapter 3

**Well, here it is! Hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did writing it!**

**~~~Chapter 3: Realization ~~~~~**

**P.O.V. Natsu Dragneel**

Back at his home, Natsu stood before his mirror, his reflection staring back at him. He had experienced quite the surprise when he had arrived; everything had been so… organized. He wasn't necessarily someone you could call neat; he had the tendency to collect items that he gained on his jobs with his teammates. And such items were scattered throughout the house, not really in any sort of order, just…there. For memories.

Not that he specifically needed the stuff to remember, seeing as he had a perfect memory. It made him feel like he had done something; that he _had_ friends, that he hadn't been abandoned again. Seeing the house organized as it was brought a small grin to his face. Obviously Lucy had been worried about him while he had been in his short coma.

Clenching his jaw, Natsu steeled himself, knowing what he was about to do was going to hurt. Well, not really hurt all that much, but _sting._ He was getting that anticipation; something similar to the one you got before ripping off a week-old Band-Aid.

Taking hold of one end of the bandage enwrapping the majority of his torso, he tugged, wincing as it pulled at half-healed flesh. It was an idiot's move, he knew that. His wounds needed to heal. But that stuff that woman had poured all over him; –his nose wrinkled at the memory- where the hell had it gone?! Sure, it had _looked_ as if it had sunk into his skin, but the thought of it sent shivers throughout his spine. The thought that it could have happened was simply disturbing.

He shuddered. Dear Igneel had it smelled putrid.

Plus, there were his dreams... Zeref as well... He paused for a moment and frowned. Right, he needed to tell the guild about that. Why hadn't he done that already? Shouldn't it have been the _first_thing he did when he got up? He shifted uncomfortably. Those pieces of information were deathly important. Like, literally.

Because if his dreams were not dreams like he suspected... Everyone was in for serious trouble if what was happening was not stopped.

Clicking his tongue, Natsu let the remainder of the bandages fall to the ground, lip curling as he saw the damage done to his body. Every little cut hurt, every black and purple bruise; but those were minor compared to the burning he felt on his back. It had barely felt warm when he had woken up, but the sensation had increased throughout the day where it had gotten to the point that nearly every small movement that shifted his back caused him pain.

Mira had not mentioned any damage to his back, but it was Zeref they were dealing with. The bastard was not one to do things directly… At least, not usually.

Stomach clenching, Natsu slowly turned, showing his back to the mirror. It was a good thing he had convinced Wendy to allow Happy to stay over that day; the little guy was such a worrywart. Though Natsu wondered if that was such a bad thing now…

Much to Natsu's horror, a discolored bruise blossomed on the skin on his back, spreading and growing darker by the second. Eyes wide, he watched as the bruise separated into pieces and formed into an intricate pattern resembling an old type of magic circle; ancient in looks. The marks were as dark as the night then, and it seemed as if someone had taken a brush as applied them to the skin of his back; Natsu began trembling.

Zeref had done something to him.

A memory flashed before his eyes, and Natsu remembered the dream he had before waking at the guild.

There was a man sitting on a throne. He looked bored; his head rested on one hand, and dark eyes were just visible under a brush of midnight-black hair as he looked downwards and the foot of his seat.

The sound of pounding feet was heard, and as the man turned his gaze up, his eyes flashed crimson for the briefest of moments. Natsu's blood ran cold. "My lord! I bring news!"

Sitting up straight, the man tilted his head slightly. "Good news, I presume?"

The servant fell to his knees and bowed, a hint of relief just showing on his face. "Yes, sir, the spell has been implanted. He could be yours at any moment now."

Natsu's throat went dry, and hee nearly forgot to breathe. So this guy... He was..._him?!_

A cold smile reached the Lord's lips. "Good. Now, leave."

The servant scrambled to get up and dash away, the sound of pounding footsteps eventually fading into the darkness. _He_ stood up, chuckling softly. "Natsu, you complete and utter fool. Wasting your time in _Fairy Tail_ when you could be doing so much more. You have no idea of the power you hold within you, son of Igneel... No one will be able to stop me this time. Not even the dragons themselves."

Natsu groaned as a flash of pain struck his head, and then everything faded to black.

* * *

**P.O.V. Lucy Heartfilia**

Lucy was back at the guild, speaking softly to Gray and Wendy. The previous day, she had shut herself in her apartment the entire time, feeling dreadfully guilty. She felt as if it were all her fault... If only she had not asked Natsu to stay with her! Then it wouldn't have been so deep into the night, and there would have been others on the street!

Happy arrived unexpectedly, though, comforting Lucy and telling her it wasn't her fault. He told her he suspected they had been targeting Natsu; so even if she hadn't done that, he would have been hit anyways.

"It's my cat-sense!" He claimed, nodding furiously.

Presently, the only reason she was at the guild was because Happy had forced her to come with him. So she went.

"Lucy!" Gray snapped his fingers in front of the celestial mage's face, frowning slightly.

"Huh?" she blinked, surprised.

Gray crossed his arms. "Are you okay?" he asked, "You keep zoning out."

"Oh, yes! I'm fine!" she squeaked, alarmed at being caught.

Gray looked as it he was going to say something else, but at that moment, the guild doors opened and Lucy heard a familiar voice. "Lucy!"

Oh dear, he was here to blame her for everything, wasn't he?

She and Gray turned, and they saw a unusually nervous- looking Natsu walking quickly towards them. "Hey there, flame-brain! Something wrong?"

As Natsu neared, it was obvious he was sweating profusely. His teeth were clenched and his eyes were darting around, as if searching for hidden threats. "Leave me alone, Gray!" he snapped harshly, leaving Gray shocked. "Lucy," she could definitely tell something was wrong as he turned to her, "Come on. Please." He held out his hand.

There was something really, really wrong. Lucy bit her lip, and with one last glance at Gray, she nodded and took Natsu's hand.

* * *

They had picked up Happy on their way to Natsu's home, where he had taken them. It was deep in the forest beside Magnolia, secluded from everything else. Natsu stood, pacing around, while Lucy had taken a seat on the edge of the couch, Happy beside her. It was a few minutes before she decided to speak.

"Natsu... Why are we here?" she asked.

Natsu paused. "...I need to tell you guys something."

Oh. What could he need to tell them that was so important? But... "Why only us?"

Natsu's back was to Lucy and Happy, but she was under the impression that he was trying very hard to get this next part out.

Happy looked on worriedly. "Natsu?"

All of a sudden, Natsu whipped around, exclaiming his answer. "I don't trust them!" he cried. "I can't explain why, but... I don't!" He looked down at the floor, expression pained. "I just don't."

* * *

**Dun dun DUH. Hopefully the next chapter will come sooner! And it'll be longer next time, I promise! **


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